Electrical attachment foe pianos



(No Model.) 6 SheetsSheet 1.

F. A. PELDKAMP.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

Patented Mar. 8, 1892.

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(No Model.) 7 6 Sheets-Shet 2. P. A. FELDKAMP.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

No. 470,294. Patented Mar. 8, 1892.

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(No Model.)

F..A. FELDKAMP. ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

No. 470,294. Patented Mar. 8. 1892.

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(No Model.) 6 SheetsSheet 4.

P. A. FELDKAMP. ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS'.

Patented Mar. 8, 1892. L

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(No Model.)

F. A. FELDKAMP. ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS. No. 470,294.

INVENTUFF- Patented Mar. 8, 1892.

WITNESSES. WM. 26% a WANT (No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 6.

F. A. FELDKAMP.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

No. 470,294. Patented Mar. 8, 1892.

, ATT'Y.

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BY @MMJZ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRITZ A. FELDKAMP, OE NEiVARK, NElV JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO FELDKAMP, SGHOENHAAR & LEHR, OF SAME PLACE.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 470,294, dated March 8, 1892.

Application filed November 9, 1891. Serial No. 411,290. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRITZ A. FELDKAMP, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electrical Attachments for Pianos; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable IO others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. My invention relates to an attachment intended for use in connection with pianos controlled by means of an electric current and a contact making and breaking apparatus used in connection with a perforated sheet of paper, whereby by means of these several devices and the electrical system a piano can be made to reproduce automatically any piece or composition in exact accordance with the intentions of the composer not only as to rhythm and melody,but also as to expression, as each and every single note can be played eitherin its normal strength, piano, forte, or fortissimo, as marked by the composer, and the crescendo and decrescendo can be exactly reproduced.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a piano with an apparatus connected with the action of the piano for operating the same by means of an electrical current, and whereby a piano is the result upon which can be played any music from the simplest air to the most complicated symphony with exactness and feeling, either by means of electricity or by hand, as may be desired, without first removing, arranging, or rearranging the apparatus or any-part of it. My invention consists generally in the on ganization of the following systems of apparatus and combining in one instrument all or any of the specific features, as may be desired for the particular purpose, embracing therein, first, a contact making and breaking apparatus into which is fed a perforated sheet, through the perforations of WhlCll electrical contact is made by means of contact arms or lovers with suitable mechanism and a motor for driving the apparatus; secondly, suitable mechanism connected with the action of the piano, consisting of electro-magnets which are put into and cut out of circuit according to the 5 5 contact made by the arms or levers in the contact making and breaking apparatus, whereby any one or more actions in the piano can be operated and the corresponding strings are caused to vibrate, and, finally, the organiza- 6o tions of the electrical circuits for operating the contact making and breaking apparatus and the electro-magnets for working the action in the piano. The contact-making roll or cylinder in the contact making or breaking apparatus is also the paper or sheet carrying roll, in which sheet holes or perforations of the necessary lengths are made, the paper or sheet traversing upon said roll beneath the points of the contact arms or levers, so that when one or more holes in the sheet have been brought under one or more of the contact-points of the arms or levers said contactpoints drop upon the metallic surface of the cylinder or roll and an electrical current is established and is free to pass through a line of wire connected therewith and with the proper magnet connected with an action in the piano, thereby rendering the invention essentially valuable in places where there are no players to perform upon the keys of the same.

Another object of the invention is to provide a contact making and breaking device which by means of its construction and the number and arrangement of the contact-making arms will automatically cause the piano to perform in imitation of the nimbleness and dexterity of the human fingers, and thereby give feeling and expression, which are so go very essential to give life to the language of music.

The invention further consists of certain arrangements and combinations of parts, such as will be hereinafter more fully described, 5 and finally embodied in the clauses of the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, in which similar letters and figures of reference are employed to indicate corresponding partsin each of the severalviews, Figure lis a diagrammatic view showing the arrangement of the elecratus a small electrical motor and intermedi ate'ly-arranged clock-work for operating and regulating the speed of the contact-cylinder over which the perforated sheet is fed, said Fig. 3 also illustrating in side elevation a comb having teeth of paper or other nonconducting material, which project down between the contact-arms, and thereby insulate one from the other. Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical cross-section of the contact-cylinder, clearly illustrating the arrangement of the contact arms or levers and a perforated sheet passed over and around the contact-cylinder. Fig. 5 is a similar View of the contactcylinder and a modified form of contact-arm, in this instance being a spring-arm. Fig. 6 is a plan view of several of such spring-arms and part of the contact-cylinder. Fig. 7 is part of a perforated sheet used in connection with the contact making and breaking apparatus. 'Fig. 8 is a side view of a piano-action which is of any well-known construction and an electro-magnet connected with said action for causing the hammer thereof to strike a string and vibrate the same when the armature has been attracted by the magnet, the several parts of mechanism in said view being shown in their inoperative positions. Fig.9 is a similar view of the action and electro-magnet connected therewith, the several parts of mechanism being illustrated in their operative positions. Fig. 10 is a front View of theseveral electro-magnets and their connecting-levers, clearly illustrating the manner of arranging them in front of the actions-of a piano; and Fig. 11 isa vertical section of one of the magnets.

In the said above-described drawings, A is the contact making and breaking apparatus, secured to a base a for placing the same on the top of a piano, or it may be secured in any other suitable position either beneath or within the piano. Said contact making and breaking apparatus consists, essentially, of a cylinder or drum a, which may be either solid or hollow, provided with guiding flanges or shoulders ct for retaining the perforated sheet bin its proper position upon the periphery of the cylinder. Said roll, cylinder, or drum a is provided on its opposite ends with journals a and within bearings a, secured to a support a are arranged the adj usting-screws a which are pointed at their free ends and which extend into indentations in the free ends of the journals a as will be evident from Figs. 2 and 3. In. this manner the cylinder rotates upon the said adjusting-screws and can be made to run perfectly true, as will be evident. The support a is supported by means of columns a secured to thefbase a. Upon one of the journals is secured a gearwheel a which projects up through the support or table a and meshes with a pinion c of any suitable clock-work mechanism 0 upon the main arbor c, on which is arranged a suitable motor 0, as will be seen more especially from Figs. 2 and 4. Upon the-upper side of the table a and on opposite sides of an-opening a therein, through which the periphery of the cylinder or drum (1. projects, I have arranged the binding-posts d, which are preferably arranged in the manner shown in Fig. 2, and each post is secured to the table a by means of a screw (1, as shown in Fig. 4. To each of said posts (1 is pivotally secured by means of a pin d a contact arm or lever d havingv the contact-point d and preferably provided witha tension-springcl for normally holding each contact-point d of the levers down upon the periphery of the cylinder at or the paper thereon: I prefer to use four of such contacts arms'to each key or action in the piano, and

these are connected with each other either at'.

the top, as in Fig. 2, or at the bottom, as in Fig. 4, by meansof the resistance-coils 0, 0, and 0 ,and from one of the arms (1 extends a wire, which connects withan electro-magnet in connection with the action and with the battery or other source for deriving electrical current.

v Above the table a, secured thereto by means of a post a at one end and to the housing of the clock-work O at the other end, is an insnlating device,which consists of a bar e,'having downweirdly-projecting insulating-strips e, made of'paper or other non-conducting material, which extend between two adjacent contact arms or levers, thereby completely insulating them one from the other and preventing an accidental contact, which would cause the wrong string to vibrate, or perhaps strike the right string with too much or not enough force, as the case may be.

In lieu of the contact arms or levers 61 (shown more especially in Fig. 4,) I can usea spring-contact, which may be made as illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6, each spring-arm d being provided with a pin d for making the contact through one of the note-perforations b in the sheet I). The action of each of these arms is similar to that illustrated in Fig. 4.

Having thus described the construction and arrangement of the several parts of the contact making and breaking apparatus A, I will now proceed to describe the arrangement of main-circuit wire g, in which is arranged a suitable battery G or other electric-currentderiving source, is attached to one of the adjusting-screws a, whereby a complete circuit can be established throughsaid wire g,throngh the journal a and cylinder at, through any one of the perforations b in the, sheet b,"any

one of the contact arms or levers (1 through any one of the branches g g g g g g, &c., connected with said levers d magnetizing the proper one of the electro-magnets h h h 71' 72.5 h, &c., and back through the'main wire 7.; to the battery or other electrical source. Any proper resistance K can be placed in this circuit, if necessary, to vary the strength of the current, as the occasion may require. WVhen the end of the wire 9 has been connected with the cylinder or drum a. in this manner, a second circuit is established through this wire g, the gear-wheel a through the clock-work C, through the main arbor c, the motor 0, the wire z, to the resistance t", which can be dispensed with, if desirable, and back through wire 2' to thebattery orother electrical source. In this manner the same current which operates the magnets connected with the actions in the piano controlled by means of the contact making and breaking apparatus also magnetizes the magnets in the motor, sets the same in operation, rotates the arbor c of the clock-work, which operates the gear-wheel a and in turn rotates the cylinder or drum a of the contact making and breaking device. The speed of the motor 0', and hence that of the cylinder or drum a, can be regulated and controlled by a small resistance 2', connected with the motor or shunt circuit, as will be evident from Figs. 1 and 2.

Now suppose the current from the battery or any other electrical source has been turned on and the prepared sheet (see Fig. 7) has been placed upon the roll or cylinder d. Then the motor by means of the intermediatelyplaced clock-work revolves said cylinder, and with it the said sheet 1) passes beneath the contact-points of the contact arms or levers (Z and when any one of said points extends through any one of the perforations b in the sheet a complete circuit is established. Suppose the contact-point on the contact arm or lever (Z at I (see Fig. 1) has made contact in this manner with the cylinder a. Then the current passes through the line g to the magnet h, which attracts the shoe or armature j. (See Figs. 8 and 9.) Said shoe is arranged on a lever j, pivotally secured to a post j and upon the upper end of said lever is a forked arm j", the forked end of which is pivotally connected with an action of the piano, which may be of the construction shown or of any other well-known construction. When the shoe j is attracted by its magnet, then the arm 7' lifts a rod Z of the action and causes the hammer Z to strike the string Z as indicated in Fig. 9.

The several magnets, each one of which is connected by means of the system of levers just described with an action, are arranged upon a fixed support J, suitably secured in the piano in a manner illustrated in Figs. 8, 9, and 10, and the forked end of each arm j engages with a pin m in the fastening-plate m, secured to the arm Zof the action, as clearly shown. As has been previously stated, there are four contactarrns and four correspondingly-arranged perforations b in the sheet Z) for each key, or, rather, for each action in the piano. IVhen the arm d at I makes contact, then the shoe j is attracted with great force, causing the hammer Z to strike Violently and playing fortissimo. The same hammer can be made to act with less force and play forte when contact is made with the arm (1 at II, (see Fig. 1,) the current passing from said cylinder through said arm on the post (1 at II, through a resistance-coil o to the post d at I, and through wire g to the magnet, the current having been weakened by the resistance 0, and hence the magnet is attracted with less force and the string produces a forte tone. When contact is made with the arm (Z at III, two resistance-coils o and o are thrown in, as will be evident from Fig. 1, and the tone of the string will be normal, the current and hence the attractive force of the magnet having been decreased lVhen it is desired to have the string vibrate with piano effect, then arm (1 at IV is caused to make contact and three resistance-coils 0, 0, and 0 are thrown into line. In the same manner contact is made at V, VI, VII, and VIII and the current passes through line g to another magnet 7L2, and so on. Contact can be made with any one of the contact-arms, or several arms (1 can make contact at one time, causing a piece to be produced upon the piano with great expression.

In Fig. 7, at 1, 2, 3, and 4, are shown the perforations for the contact-arms di'and at I, II, III, and IV in Fig. 1 and at 1, 2 8, and 4 in said Fig. 7 those for the contact-arms at V, VI, VII, and VIII in Fig. 1. Of course it will be evident that the strength of the current, and hence that of the tone, can be greatly modified by using more than four contact arms or levers (Z for one action; but for ordinary purposes four contact arms are preferable. If desirable, I can employ a smaller number of such contactarms, as will be evident. In the same manner the contact-arm at Y in Fig. 2 is connected with the loud pedal by means of a wire G and mechanism similar to that shown in Fig. 8, and the contactarm at Z in Fig. 1 can be connected with the soft pedal by means of the wire G The advantages of this arrangement of the contact. arms or levers and the different resistancecoils are that any music from the simplest air to the most complicated symphony and raphsody can be played by the instrument with precision, the forte and pianissimo, and the crescendo and decrescendo as marked by the composer being exactly reproduced. Further, each action has its own magnet and branch current and cannot get out of order and needs at no time the attendance of an electrician when the parts have been arranged in position.

It is not necessary to have a piano built exclusively for being worked by electricity, as the device can be connected to any piano, and

the same instrument can be played with electricity or by hand. The quantity of electricity necessary to work the piano is exceedingly small and can be drawn from any electric-light or other conductor or from a storage-battery or an accumulator, which latter needs a refilling or charging only at intervals of several weeks.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. The combination, in a piano, of the action thereof, electro-magnets attached to a fixed support, and mechanism connected with said magnets for electrically controlling the action, consisting, essentially, of an arm j, provided with a shoe j and pivoted to a post or arm 9' a second arm 7' connected with a rod Z of the-action for operating the same when the shoe has been attracted by its magnets, an electrical circuit connected with said magnets, and a contact making and breaking device in said circuit, provided with contactarms and contact-points for making and breaking the circuit and causing saidmagnets to operate the mechanism connected with the action, substantially as and for the purposes set forth. g

2. The combination, in a piano, of the action thereof, electro-magnets attached to a fixed support, and mechanism connected with said magnets for electrically controlling the action, said mechanism consisting, essentially, of an arm j, provided with a shoe j and pivoted to a post or arm 3' and asecond armj connected with a rod Z of the action for operating the same when the shoe j has been attracted by its magnet, substantially and for the purposes set forth.

3. The combination, in a piano, of the action thereof, electro-magnets attached to a fixed support, and mechanism connected with said magnets for electrically controlling the action, said mechanism consisting, essentially, of an arm j, provided with a shoej and pivoted to a post or arm 7' 2. second arm 7' connected with a rod Z of the action for operating the same when the shoe j has been attracted by its magnet, local circuits in which said magnets are placed, a main circuit, a contact-cylinder connected at one end with the main circuit, and a series of contact arms or leversconnected with said local circuits for establishing electrical contact with the periphery of said cylinder, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

at. The combination, in apiano, of the action thereof, electro-magnets attached to a fixed support, and mechanism connected with said magnets for electrically controlling the action,

a local circuit in which said magnets are arranged, a main circuit, a contact roller or cylinder for carrying a perforated sheet, held in bearings and provided with journals, one of which is connected with said main circuit, a series of contact arms or levers connected with said local circuits, said levers being adapt-ed to make contact through the 'perforations in the sheet with said contact-cylinder and said arms or levers being connected with said local circuits, a gear-wheel a on one of said journals on said cylinder, a clock-work mechanism, a motor connected therewith, and a local circuit between said motor and the main circuit, substantially as and for the purposesset forth.

5, The combination, in a piano, of the action thereof, electro-magnets attached to a fixed support, and mechanism connected with said magnets for electrically oontrollingthe action, a local circuit in which said magnets are arranged, a main circuit, a contact roller or cylinder for carrying a perforated sheet, held in bearings and provided with journals, one of which is connected with said main circuit, a series of contact arms or levers connected with said local circuit, said levers being adapted to make contact through the perforations in the sheet with said contact-cylinder and said arms or levers being connected with said local circuits, a gear-wheel a on one of said journals on said cylinder, a clock-work mechanism, a motor connected therewith,and

a local circuit between said motor and the maincircuit, and a resistance 2" in said circuit, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

6. The herein-described contact making and breaking device, consisting, essentially, of a table support, a sheet-carrying contact roller or cylinder arranged in bearings, and posts d on said support, provided with pivoted contactarms and contact-points on said arms for establishing contact with the periphery of said roller or cylinder, and resistancecoils between some of said posts, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

7. The herein-described contact making and breaking device, consisting, essentially, of a table-support, a sheet carrying contact roller or cylinder arranged in bearings, and posts d on said support, provided with pivoted contact-arms and contact-points on said arms for establishing contact with the periphery of said roller or cylinder, and resistancecoils between some of said posts, and an' insulating device '6, provided with teeth of a non-conducting material, said teeth being arranged between said contact-arms, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

8. The herein-described contact making and breaking device, consisting, essentially, of a table-support, a sheet-carrying contact roller or cylinder arranged in bearings, and contact-posts cl on said support, provided with pivoted contact-arms and contact-points on said arms for'establishing contact with the periphery of said roller or cylinder, resistancecoils betweensome of said posts,agear-wheel a on a journal of said cylinder, a clock-work mechanism, and a motor on the clock-work arbor, all operating to drive the contact-cylinder, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

9. In the herein-described contact making and breaking device, a contact roller or cyl- In testimony that I claim the invention set inder, and contact arms or levers (Z pivotally forth above I have hereunto set my hand this 10 arranged on posts d, every fourth post being 6th day of November, 1891.

connected with a line-wire, and resistance- 5 coils 0, connecting said intermediate posts FRITZ A. FELDKAMP.

with each other and with said posts connected Vitnesses: with the line-wire, as and for the purposes set FREDK. O. FRAENTZEL,

forth. WM. H. GAMFIELD, Jr. 

